Winthrop was named after the first Governor of Massachusetts, John Winthrop, and is the only Town in Suffolk County. It is located on a peninsula, at the beginning of the North Shore, with 7 miles of shore line that provides breathtaking views of the ocean to the East and of the Boston skyline to the West.<br> Originally part of an area called Winnesimmet by the Native Americans, the peninsula was annexed by Boston in 1632 and within 5 years became the grazing area for farm animals of the rapidly growing Boston colony. In 1637 it was divided into 15 parcels of land which were given by Governor Winthrop to prominent men in Boston with the stipulation that each must erect a building on his land within 2 years. Few, if any, of these men ever lived here but their farms prospered. One of these early houses, built initially during the first half of the 1600’s,and rebuilt in 1675, was the home of Governor Winthrop’s youngest son Deane who lived there until his death in 1703. This house is still standing and is maintained, for public viewing, by the Winthrop Improvement and Historical Association.<br> In 1739, what is now Chelsea, Revere and Winthrop withdrew from Boston due to governmental control disputes and became the Town of Chelsea. Again the desire for more local control resulted in Revere and Winthrop seceding from Chelsea in 1846 to become No. Chelsea. Shortly thereafter, in 1852, Winthrop was incorporated as a Town in its own right with a Board of Selectmen and Town Meeting form of government. In 1920, Winthrop was the second Town in the Commonwealth to apply for and receive a Charter for a Representative Town Meeting which has continued to date.